WCHS Hall of Fame Awards Banquet

And the Georgie goes to…..

Join the Washington County Historical Society in celebrating the Washington County Historical Society Hall of Fame 1st Annual Awards Banquet.

The Hall of Fame banquet was designed as a way to honor individuals who are making a difference in Washington County today and to honor historical figures that impacted the county during their life.

The inaugural honorees are:

Present:                                                                                 

Mr. Mel Blount – sports legend and local businessman

Dr. Mary Jo Podgurski – educator and teen health advocate

Col. Walter Marm – Vietnam veteran and Congressional Medal of Honor winner

Past:

Mr. Boyd Crumrine, Esq. – lawyer, historian, and founder of the Washington County Historical Society

Mrs. Ann Hupp May – heroine of Miller’s Blockhouse and defender of her family

Dr. Charles “Pruner” West – successful student athelete, doctor, and first black athlete to play quarterback in the Rose Bowl

The banquet will take place on May 31, 2014 in The Ballroom at Washington & Jefferson College. The evening will begin at 6:15 p.m. with a cocktail reception followed by dinner and the awards program beginning at 7 p.m.

Tickets are $100.00 and table sponsorship options are available.

For information on tickets and sponsorship click here.

For more information about the event please contact the Washington County Historical Society at 724-225-6740 or wchs@wchspa.org.

Washington County Frontier Forts: Nat Geo Premiere

Nat Geo’s Diggers T.V. Show Focuses on Washington County History – February 25

Ringy and John at the dig on John's property

Ringy and John at the dig on John’s property

After experiencing great success in Washington County during the series premiere episode of  Nat Geo’s Diggers T.V. show on the Whiskey Rebellion, the crew has decided to come back to Washington County to see what history they can dig up. In the upcoming premiere of the second half of Diggers Season Two, the team explores the history of Washington County Frontier Fort Sites.

The three Frontier Fort Sites featured in the episode garnered a wealth of artifacts including one of the largest collections ever found by the Diggers crew and an artifact that could become one of the most important in Washington County history.

Check out the full Digger’s schedule.

David Bradford House: An Evening with Colonel Washington

THE 5TH SYMPOSIUM ON LIFE AND CUSTOMS IN WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA – March 28 – 7:00pm

Washington & Jefferson College

The Chapel at Old Main

washingtonThe David Bradford House and Washington & Jefferson College are excited to present this year’s Symposium on General Braddock’s Expedition of 1755. To bring light to this subject we have invited Mr. Norman Baker to speak at the event.  Mr. Baker, author of the recently published Braddock’s Road: Mapping the British Expedition from Alexandria to the Monongahela, has spent years mapping the road cut by General Braddock during his ill-fated march.  Also presenting will be  Mr. Bryan Cunning as George Washington from the time of Braddock’s Expedition. He has protrayed Washington in documentaries such as George Washington’s First War: The Battles for Fort Duquesne  and Pursuit of Honor: The Rise of George Washington. Mr. Cuninning will recount Washington’s observations along the march, the defeat on the Monongahela, Braddock’s demise, and the plan to guard the Virginia frontier from the French and Indian threat.

To learn more about this event visit the Bradford House Symposium website.

Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Historic Village Opens 2014 Season on May 3

meadowcroft 2Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Historic Village, the oldest site of human habitation in North America, will kick off its 2014 season Sat., May 3, at noon.

Meadowcroft, part of the Senator John Heinz History Center’s museum system, was named one of the “Five Great Places to See Evidence of First Americans” by Smithsonian magazine. The site has become an international destination, welcoming nearly 17,000 visitors from 41 U.S. states and 17 countries last year.

The National Historic Landmark, located in Avella, Pa. in Washington County, features a massive, 16,000-year-old rock overhang used by the region’s earliest inhabitants for shelter.

Traveling forward through time, Meadowcroft offers visitors the chance to experience what everyday life was like for Upper Ohio Valley inhabitants over the past 400 years.

Visitors to the 16th century Eastern Woodland Indian Village can step inside a wigwam, pound corn into meal, or try their hand at throwing the atlatl, a spear thrower used by prehistoric hunters.

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Smithsonian Magazine names Meadowcroft Rockshelter one of the “Five Great Places to See Evidence of First Americans”

rockshelterMeadowcroft, part of the Senator John Heinz History Center’s museum system, was named one of the “Five Great Places to See Evidence of First Americans” by Smithsonian magazine. The site has become an international destination, welcoming 17,000 visitors from 41 U.S. states and 17 countries in 2013.

The National Historic Landmark, located in Avella, Pa. in Washington County, features a massive, 16,000-year-old rock overhang used by the region’s earliest inhabitants for shelter.

Traveling forward through time, Meadowcroft offers visitors the chance to experience what everyday life was like for Upper Ohio Valley inhabitants over the past 400 years.

Continue reading